For the past six years general practitioners in Britain have had probably the best feedback data about their prescribing in the world: PACT (prescription analyses and cost) reports in England, and equivalent reports in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. This month general practitioners in England will find changes in their quarterly PACT reports that make them even more useful.

The changes have been made after lengthy discussions between the Department of Health and the Prescription Pricing Authority and a number of user groups and panels representing the interests of everyone concerned, including general practitioners.

A new “standard report” replaces both the old level 1 report, which gave headline data to all practitioners, and the level 2 report, which showed where the highest costs were being incurred to doctors who requested it or to those who received it automatically when their costs were high compared with the local average. The standard reports will appear quarterly and may be obtained for individual months on request. The old level …